British diving prodigy pulls off second gold as he beats out Olympic medallist twice his age

Last updated at 19:11 06 January 2008

Teen prodigy Tom Daley secured a second gold medal with his final dive of the British Diving Championships after a thrilling encounter with Olympic medallist Peter Waterfield.

The championships in Manchester ended with a contest between 26-year-old Waterfield and 13-year-old Daley, the latter coming from 32 points down at the midway point to secure victory with 471.10.

Waterfield took the silver with 462.60 and Gareth Jones took the bronze with 425.50.

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Daley said: "After my first two dives, I knew I had do something special to simply get into the top two.

"It was one of my best ever dives and it came at exactly the right time. It just proves that anything can happen in diving and you have to keep that belief."

The schoolboy from Plymouth, Devon, has astounded with his exceptional talent and was last year voted BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.

He became fascinated in diving from the moment his father, an electrician, took him as a seven-year-old to the local baths. "I thought it would be more exciting than just swimming," Daley says. "I found it came naturally and was much more enjoyable than playing football."

British national performance director Steve Foley admitted he will make his selection for the pairs to represent Great Britain at the Olympic qualifier in Beijing in February. Daley looks to be a shoo-in.

His nickname is "Diver Boy" at school, but Daley continues to build an impressive reputation outside the schoolyard. He says: "I want to be able to go to the London Games in 2012 and get a gold medal there but also I would like to go to Beijing.

"It would be amazing to go to an Olympics at 14."

Also in Manchester, the Women's three-metre event went all the way to the final dive, with Jodie McGroarty claiming the title.